NH Senior News Notes

Carmen Gingras and Larry Steele, sitting, were named the queen and king of Valentine's Day during a party at Blessed Sacrament Church hall in Manchester last month. They're joined by, from left, Sister Joan Messier, the Rev. John F. Bucchino, OFM, the pastor, and Sister Anne Marineau. The party also included a catered meal, a sing-along with Jim Butka at the piano and singing by Linda and Michael Racette. (COURTESY)

Meals on Wheels to host Mayors for Meals DayMerrimack - St. Joseph Community Services, which provides Meals on Wheels and community dining throughout Hillsborough County, will host a Mayors for Meals Day from 10 to 11 a.m. Thursday at the Nashua Senior Activity Center as a part of its March For Meals campaign.

Nashua Mayor Donnalee Lozeau will participate to show her support for the community's seniors and people who are disabled and homebound.

"I look forward to the annual opportunity to help deliver meals and meet recipients. St. Joseph Community Services does a great job providing a valuable service in our community," Lozeau said.

Mayors for Meals is a national campaign initiated by the Meals on Wheels Association of America, which seeks to raise awareness of senior hunger and to encourage action on the part of the local community. Mayors from across the country will be delivering meals.

For more information, contact Maribeth McCue, development manager, at 424-9967 or DevMgr@SJCSinc.org. To volunteer or donate to Meals on Wheels in Hillsborough County, go to MealsOnWheelNH.org.

-- April 26-27: Hyannis, Mass., and the Nantucket Daffodil Festival. Includes a buffet luncheon, Sandwich Glass Museum admission, a tour of Hyannis, dinner at the Paddock, optional shopping, a stay at Hyannis Inn Motel, breakfast, a ferry ride to Nantucket, an island tour and the festival. Space is limited to 50. The fee of $277 per person (double), $249 (triple) or $245 (quad) is due by Tuesday, March 26.

--June 10-11: Portsmouth and Ogunquit, Maine. Includes lunch on Market Square, a cruise of Portsmouth Harbor, a tour of the New Hampshire and southern Maine coastlines, dinner at Perkins Cove, a stay at Norseman Resort in Ogunquit, a full breakfast, a driving tour of Kennebunkport and Ogunquit, a harbor cruise, free time in Perkins Cove and dinner at the Old Village Inn in Ogunquit. The cost is $291/$279/$273.

To check on availability, call the center at 536-1204.

Seniors welcome at 'Elijah's Table' in Derry

DERRY - Elijah's Table, a joint project of Etz Hayim Synagogue and the Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration, offers free meals to the community twice a month.

The next dinner, which is open to all, will be from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Sunday at the synagogue, 1-1/2 Hood Road. The menu includes eggplant Parmesan, pasta, vegetables and dessert. A few prizes also will be awarded.

LEBANON - The Grafton County Senior Citizens Council's annual meeting will begin at 11:45 a.m. Monday, April 1, with lunch at the Upper Valley Senior Center, 10 Campbell St.

The business meeting will start at 12:30 p.m., followed by the keynote address by Lew Felstein, former president and CEO of the N.H. Charitable Foundation.

The public is welcome. Luncheon reservations are required; contact Colin at 448-4213 ext. 110 or clacy@gcscc.org by noon Wednesday. The council is celebrating its 40th anniversary of serving Grafton County's older adults.

Cashin center offers Memory Lane Cafe

MANCHESTER - The Cashin Senior Center, 151 Douglas St., offers a Memory Lane Cafe, a social gathering for those affected by Alzheimer's and dementia, from 2 to 4 p.m. the fourth Wednesday of every month. The next session is March 27.

The cafe is a safe and relaxed environment for people with dementia and their families and other caregivers to come together with others who understand the disease and the situations dementia patients and their families face. The first hour offers support and education for the family while the person with dementia is engaged in an activity. The second hour is a social time in which everyone participates in activities together.

For more details or to make a reservation, contact Shirley Gordon at 647-6390 or shirlgrdn@yahoo.com. Genesis Healthcare and a team of volunteers host and organize the cafe.

The center also has two informational presentations scheduled this week.

Healthsouth Rehabilitation Hospital is sponsoring a presentation on "Rehabilitation Alternatives" at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday. The discussion will look at the variety of care available for rehabilitation and the differences between programs.

Beasley & Ferber, P.A., is sponsoring a "Nursing Home, Medicaid and Elder Law Workshop" at 12:30 p.m. Thursday. Elder law attorney Ted Beasley will discuss New Hampshire Medicaid laws, how to protect a house and savings from a prolonged nursing home stay and how to avoid probate and the New Hampshire estate tax.

'Family Love Letter' focus of Chapin center program

NEW LONDON - The Chapin Senior Center of the Kearsarge Council on Aging, 37 Pleasant St., will host a program on the "Family Love Letter" at 1:30 p.m. Thursday, March 28.

The "love letter" involves creating an emergency plan for loved ones in case tragedy strikes. It is a compilation of all the information a family would need at the time of a person's death or incapacity. To learn more or to register, call COA at 526-6368.

To attend the next Conversations With Lunch program at noon Monday, March 25, at St. Andrew Church, call the COA to register by Wednesday. The conversation will focus on "(Not So) Elementary, My Dear Watson: The Popularity of Sherlock Holmes." Ann K. McClellan will gives this New Hampshire Humanities presentation.